GPs paid to lecture us on drinking...but ‘no proof ’ we even listen!
a FLAGSHIP scheme that pays doctors up to £30 a time to give patients alcohol advice has ‘failed’ to show it works.
NHS Scotland has delivered at least 667,000 alcohol Brief Interventions since 2008, most of which are carried out by GPs.
Abis are conversations to get patients to think about their drinking and whether or not they should cut down.
Scotland is one of the only countries in the world to have such as scheme as a routine part of healthcare.
But a damning report into the Scottish Government’s drive to tackle the nation’s drinking epidemic found no evidence it works.
a joint investigation by Stirling and edinburgh universities said the Government’s failure to monitor the success of the scheme was a ‘serious weakness’.
although likely to have cost million of pounds, the Government does not know how much has been spent on the project so far.
During a typical ABI a doctor will ask a patient how much they drink, and if they exceed the weekly recommended limit of 14 units, offer ways to cut down. Peo- ple with alcohol-related health problems or injuries are more likely to be quizzed.
Doctors are paid around £10-£30 a time for taking part in the sessions, but no analysis has been produced to find out if the programme has helped patients reduce their drinking.
Abis have been shown to be effective, but how successful they are as part of a nationally-funded programme is unknown, and the researchers warned this was a ‘missed opportunity’. The report said that evidence on whether routinely carrying out Abis was successful is ‘scarce’, but giving financial incentives ‘may be an effective strategy’ to encourage GPs to carry them out.
It described the lack of evidence on the scheme as a ‘weakness’ the Government must address.
GPs told researchers that many people now drink cheap alcohol from supermarkets at home, instead of going to pubs and clubs, which means they are not as aware of how much they are drinking.
Dr niamh Fitzgerald, of the Institute for Social Marketing at Stirling University, said: ‘While Scotland’s national programme of ABIS is among the most extensive of any country, it has contributed little in terms of research on how best to incentivise practitioners to talk to patients about alcohol.’
Dr Peter rice, chairman of Scottish health action on alcohol Problems, said: ‘ABIS are a key tool in reducing alcohol-related harm. It is vital the Government draws on important sources of data for the benefit of patients.’
a Scottish Government spokesman said it could not produce a cost as it did not ‘assess’ how much health boards spent on the service within their budgets.
he added: ‘Through health boards we have delivered over 667,000 interventions, potentially reducing the requirement for alcohol-related treatment later on.’